Tuesday, December 4, 2012

How dirty politicking shamed India: Suspension from Olympics

How dirty politicking
shamed India: Suspension from Olympics

Thakur Ranjit Singh was
punished by Auckland Indian community for a Facebook posting, among others,
about India’s performance in Olympics
and other truths about corruption in India that shame Indian Diaspora. Now the truth is out

This is the
extract of my famous or infamous facebook posting on India’s Independence that
riled the Indian community, which, assisted by Indian Newslink, formed a lynch mob to scalp Thakur. They said, how dare Thakur, not a
real Indian say
such things about Mother India, Bharat mata, They went on to curtail my human
rights, freedom of speech and I was suspended on pressure by Indians as Vice President
of Waitakere Indian Association.

Below is an
extract of what I wrote on 15 August, 2012 on Facebook on India’s Olympic
failures:

As a business community we have
done well, how about as human beings? Look as Olympic medal tally. China with
the same population is in top 3 while India with a billion people HAS BECOME A
LAUGHING STOCK. Do we still have corrupt officials like Kalmadi leading
our sporting team? HOW IS OUR BHARAT MAHAAN?

NZ Sports at Yahoo reported
the following:

LAUSANNE (AFP) - India has had its rights suspended by the International
Olympic Committee (IOC) because of its stance of electing tainted officials it
was announced after a meeting of the IOC Executive Board here on Tuesday.

Suspension of their IOC rights means India will not receive IOC funding
and its officials would be banned from attending Olympic meetings and events.

India's athletes would also be barred from competing in the Olympics
under the national flag, although the IOC could allow some to take part under
the Olympic flag.

The suspension comes amid an ongoing row between the Indian Olympic
Association (IOA) and the IOC over the election procedure for top posts in the
national organisation due to be held on Wednesday.

A New Delhi court directed the faction-ridden IOA to hold the vote
according to the government's sports code but the IOC wanted it to abide by the
Olympic charter that favours autonomy and prompted its action on Tuesday.

Suresh Kalmadi, Commonwealth Games Organising Committee's Secretary General and President of IOA, who brought international shame to Indian Diaspora first through Commonwealth Games and now through IOA. Is that the best India has to offer?

Meanwhile, Times of India reported the following:

NEW
DELHI: Sports became the unfortunate loser in this battle for power, the fight
to control the country's top sports body, the Indian
Olympic Association (IOA). The violation of the Olympic charter in the
IOA elections may be perceived as the reason for IOC's extreme step, but the
developments in the run-up to the December 5 IOA elections showed that it could
not be the only reason.

When the IOC's ethics commission wrote a letter suggesting that the IOA
president Suresh Kalmadi, Commonwealth
Games Organising Committee's secretary general Lalit Bhanot and
former Badminton Association of India President VK Verma should be suspended
from the Olympic movement, one thought good sense would prevail.

Suddenly, Kalmadi pulled out of the
IOA elections, making the national contest an open one for the first time in 16
years. This is when ugly politicking began' which finally ended in the
suspension of the country from the Olympic movement on Tuesday.

The elections became a pitched battle between Kalmadi and his long-time IOA
associate, secretary general Randhir Singh, who now wanted the top-most post.
Kalmadi, sources said, was not happy with the fact that he got the flak for the
Commonwealth Games scam and even went to jail but Randhir walked away without
any taint.

I have a question for
Indians representing the group that wanted me punished for speaking truth about
corruption, black money in Swiss banks and shameful treatment of women: do they
support such vices in India?

It is time for Indian
leadership to do some soul-searching about the stigma of corrupt people that
Indian politicians and officials bestow to Indian Diaspora. With such
international corruption and poor governance records, how can you blame Kiwis
if they start looking us, Indian and People of Indian Origin migrants with
suspicion and doubt?

You be the judge whether
Thakur was wrong in speaking truth about India? How long will Indian media and
leadership sweep such shameful actions under the carpet?